次 meaning in English

cì

next in sequence; second

HSK 1measure wordadjective6 strokes

Meaning of 次

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

cì

next in sequence
second
the second (day, time etc)
secondary
vice-
sub-
infra-
inferior quality

How to use 次

次 (cì) is most often a measure word for occurrences, placed after a number: 一次 (yí cì) once, 两次 (liǎng cì) twice. It also appears in time words like 上次 (shàng cì) last time and 下次 (xià cì) next time. Example: 我去过北京三次。(Wǒ qù guo Běijīng sān cì.) I have been to Beijing three times.

Think of 次 (cì) as a list of turns: something comes first, then the next one in line. It counts how many times something happens, and it can also mean second in rank or lower in quality.

Common mistake: Learners often put the number and 次 in the wrong place when there is an object noun. Say 我看过两次这个电影 or 我看过这个电影两次, not 我两次看过这个电影. Also note 两次 (liǎng cì), not 二次 (èr cì), for twice.

次 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

我wǒ希xī望wàng下xià次cì你nǐ会huì小xiǎo心xīn点diǎn。

I hope next time you'll be more careful.

再zài做zuò一yī次cì，和hé之zhī前qián一yī样yàng。

Do it again, the same as last time.

那nà么me，这zhè次cì发fā生shēng了le什shén么me？

So, what happened this time?

我wǒ以yǐ前qián来lái过guò很hěn多duō次cì了le。

I've been here many times before.

当dāng她tā下xià次cì来lái的de时shí候hòu，我wǒ会huì在zài家jiā里lǐ。

I will be at home when she comes next.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

次 cì · next in sequence · 6 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 次.

下次	xià cì	next time
上次	shàng cì	last time
其次	qícì	next; secondly
多次	duō cì	many times; repeatedly
再次	zàicì	once more; once again
层次	céngcì	layer; level
首次	shǒucì	first; first time
此次	cǐ cì	this time
一次性	yīcìxìng	one-off (offer); one-time
次数	cìshù	number of times; frequency
依次	yīcì	in order; in succession
初次	chūcì	for the first time; first (meeting, attempt etc)

Questions about 次

What does 次 mean?

次 (cì) means "next in sequence; second" and is used as a measure word and adjective.

How do you write 次?

次 is made of 1 character: 次 (6 strokes). That is 6 strokes in total.

Is 次 an HSK word?

Yes. 次 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

What is the difference between 次 and 遍?

次 (cì) counts how many times something happens. 遍 (biàn) stresses doing an action from start to finish, like reading a whole book once. 请再说一遍 (Qǐng zài shuō yí biàn) means please say it once more, all the way through.

How does 次 mean inferior quality?

As an adjective, 次 (cì) can describe something second rate. In casual speech, 这个东西太次了 (Zhège dōngxi tài cì le) means this thing is really poor quality. The related idea of second in rank appears in 其次 (qícì), meaning secondly.